At a time when cows continue to be hauled to the salebarn and the country's cow herds are still not being rebuilt, increasing the productive life of a cow is worth more now than ever. The continued decrease in calf numbers has sustained a higher price for calves and feeder cattle for several months now, and the trend looks to continue. The worst drought that many can remember continues to have a strangle-hold on major cow areas of the country, and those cows may not be there much longer. So, if you own a cow, now is the time to make sure she is producing and maintaining her place in your herd.

The cost to replace a cow in the herd today is substantial. If you are keeping heifers and raising them for replacements, 2 years of feed costs along with what they are worth as calves mean those heifers likely are worth $1,400 or more by the time she has her first calf. If you buy young bred cows, be prepared to spend more than ever. While these costs are high, the good news is that calves are selling higher too, so it is possible to recoup your investment within a reasonable time. Although how long does it really take to get that money back? If one looks at more than just initial cost, then the answer is a lot longer than you think. Table 1 illustrates the flow of money from initial purchase of a female through several years of production, taking into account feed and interest costs.

If you take into account feed and interest costs, the chart shows that the heifer/cow doesn't actually turn a profit until she is 6 years old, at current costs with some assumptions about future costs. If that cow was open as a 4 year old, she would be sold and with her salvage value as well as proceeds from her calf that year, she would net you $534.29 for 3 calves. Or you could look at it as $178/calf profit. However, if she doesn't come up open until after her 7th calf, then her net calf profit is $258/head over her life span. As you can see, keeping her bred every year is of the utmost importance right now!

There is no single manageable part of the cow business that will help keep these cows in the herd longer than a solid nutrition plan. It is easy to look at high feed costs right now and become discouraged. However, we can never remind clients enough to look at both sides. Calf prices are extremely high too. The reward is still there for the taking. Cutting back on the nutrition program will not make your cattle any more profitable in the long run. If one does enough to get by on protein and energy, but cuts the mineral program short, the short term financial relief may seem welcome. However, the cuts we make in nutrition now are sometimes not seen for several months, maybe even a year or two in beef cattle. If by cutting your mineral program back or out completely, the only setback you might see is a missed breeding cycle in your cows. But how much would that cost you? If you had 100 cows and 50 of them didn't breed on the first cycle, that would be about 20 days of lost calf growth due to later calving times next spring. Assume that those 50 all bred in the second cycle, so you have 50 calves that lost 40 lbs each (2lb/day gain X 20 days). At today's calf prices, that would be a minimum of $2800 in lost revenue because of lighter calves at weaning. That in itself could almost pay for an entire year's worth of mineral for the entire herd!

The examples can go on and on about how the nutrition program is going to pay for itself in the cow/calf herd. The bottom line is this and everyone with cattle has heard it before: You can't starve a profit out of your cows and calves. If you'd like some help on how to best make that profit right now with your cattle and formulating a sound nutrition program, contact one of us at Great Plains Livestock Consulting, Inc.